I painted 3 octopuses. Only one made the cut.

I mentioned last week about starting ocean-themed wallpaper, and I’ve officially started! The pattern will feature whales, octopuses (or octopi?!), coral, fish, and sea turtles.

Anyway! I have had 3 different styles in my head (as in: dreaming about them…seriously) and wanted to get them on paper using the octopus as a test. I really wanted to see what each would look like before deciding which direction to take this initial collection.

So... let's walk through all three styles, why I love certain things about each one, why I don’t think 2 of them would work, and which one won! 💛

Why wallpaper?

I started an Ocean Collection in late summer. I do like these on their own, but I kept imagining them in a room together on top of a coordinating wallpaper pattern. I’ve wanted to try wallpaper & textiles for years, so I figured…why not give it a try?

I love painting & creating patterns, so this seemed so adjacent to wall art that I thought it would be worth pursuing (below is a picture of 3 of the wall art pieces for the Ocean Collection). 

My goal for this entire collection is for it to be peaceful, calming, with coastal cottage vibes. And the artwork HAS to feel like me, it HAS to look like my style. I never want my work to look like something you could buy anywhere. I want someone to walk in and instantly know: that is an Amanda Klein piece.

Because if my artwork doesn't feel uniquely mine, then what's the point?

Octopus #1: A Simple Line Drawing

The first one was pure line work, just the clean outline with some subtle details. Before painting it, this is actually the design that I thought I would go with, as it was such a contrast to the ocean wall art collection.

And honestly? I do like how simple and clean it is…and I can totally see it repeating on a wall. But I didn’t see my style in it. There are tons of beautiful line-drawing wallpapers out there, and while it's cute, it’s just not me.

If someone walked into the room, would they know it was mine? No.

Octopus #2: The Floral Octopus

This one is super close to my classic style. If you’ve followed my work for a while, you know I love white space. Intricate, detailed florals with lots of paper showing through, which I try to make appear as part of the artwork itself.

Instead of painting a solid octopus, I used tiny floral elements to build the actual shape of the octopus.

My desire for this piece is for someone to look at it from across the room and think, "Oh, cool octopus!" And then as they get closer, they’re like: Whoa. Holy crap. That entire octopus is made out of flowers!

I felt like this style does create a good backdrop for the coordinating framed art. You could hang any of the ocean pieces right on top of this wallpaper and they won't get lost at all.

Octopus #3: Layered Watercolor & Floral

The third version is closest to how I painted the original ocean wall art. There are two layers: a watercolor base with deep shading and gradients, topped with detailed floral line work.

As a standalone art piece? It works. It’s bold, rich, and has so much depth. But I imagined an entire wall covered in these heavy, dark, super detailed creatures, and then hanging framed artwork over it. It felt too heavy. I want this wallpaper to feel light, airy, and calming.

So the winner is... Octopus NUMBER TWO!

The more I looked at all three, the more I knew #2 was the one. It feels like me. It has the detailed florals, it’s light enough for full walls, and it complements the original artwork well.

So that’s the plan! I’m creating a full collection in this style: octopuses, whales, fish, coral, sea anemones, and sea turtles. (And just FYI... I'm also planning a 4th original artwork piece featuring a sea turtle, because it felt like it was missing something & I just love sea turtles anyway).

At the end of the day, the ocean is just so healing for my soul. It really is. When my family goes to the beach, we all just love it. My son loves the water so much, and some of my absolute favorite memories are by the ocean.

I know so many of you feel that exact same way. Whether it’s family trips growing up, watching your kids play in the waves, or just standing at the water's edge... the ocean holds so many special memories.

I want this wallpaper to bring a little piece of that peace and happiness into your home. Because artwork isn't just about making something pretty to look at…it’s about how it makes you feel.